The Sudbury teen is not alone. A Toronto-based charity called Cameron Helps offers youth suicide awareness and prevention programs; it also partners with community groups and schools to bring recreational youth running groups to communities.

It's that type of program Tillson wants to see succeed in the northeast.

"Really I just want to help students like myself," he said.

"I'm seeing the change, the difference it's making in students in southern Ontario that are in this program in the school boards," he continued. "It's massive and I want to be able to bring that to a community like Sudbury that's in desperate need for it."

Tillson said he was surprised to learn how few mental health resources were available to him in Sudbury.

He is planning to host a run April 23 at Adanac Hill to raise money for the run program.